18 Months

Our handsome little man turned 18 months old today. He is such a joy to be around; Mommy and Daddy never tire of watching him learn and talk. It's amazing to think that just one year ago he was having his first taste of "real" food and starting to roll around. Now he can do so many things:

• Walk and run. In fact, he runs a little too much. Yesterday he did a face plant on the kitchen floor and had to go to the doctor. Thankfully, no serious damage was done! He was back to normal in no time, asking for a bagel and talking up a storm.
• Speaking of talking, he learns new words all the time! Mommy and Daddy have to be careful of what they say around him. :) Some of Wyatt's words include: bath, book, bug, vac (vacuum), nap, night-night, jams (pajamas), drink, empty, Nell, bye-bye, dub-dub (rub-a-dub-dub for lotion), phone, home, ball, etc. He also knows a couple of phrases: love you and buy a vowel.
• Yes, Wheel of Fortune is one of his favorite shows. He actually thinks Vanna is his Nana.
• He can identify several parts of his body and name them. He likes to touch Mommy and Daddy's eyes and honk our noses.
• He follows directions pretty well, or at least he knows what he is being told to do. Most of the time, he does it!
• He loves to help. He picks up his toys, unloads the dishwasher, puts clothes in the washer, and sweeps the floor. We should start giving him an allowance!
• He loves his "mink minks". These are two soft blankets that he takes to bed with him.
• He can feed himself most of the time with a spoon. He is just now learning how to "stab" his food with a fork.
• He gives big hugs. Just recently, he started holding the back of Mommy and Daddy's heads when hugging them. It is the sweetest thing.
• He still refers to himself as "Baby" (which could get confusing come June).
• He loves books. His current favorites are anything with meows (cats), Bot (Spot the dog), or Elmo. Lift-the-flaps are still a huge hit with him.
• He attends storytime at the library every Monday, playgroup every Thursday and recently completed a session of Music Pups classes.
  

Wyatt is a busy little boy, quite literally. It is rare to see him just slow down and linger, although he is starting to play independently with certain toys. Mommy and Daddy wish they could just bottle up that energy! In fact, we wish we could just keep our little man this little for as long as possible. Before we know it, he'll be a teenager and we'll be sitting around saying, "Remember when..." So for now, we're just soaking up all the cuteness and enjoying every little bear hug while they last.

Happy Half-Birthday, Wyatt. Mommy and Daddy love you more than words can say!


(If you like the picture above, here are a couple others for your viewing pleasure. They were taken by Portrait Innovations.)